He Thought I Was Faking My Death, But I Was Really Gone Chapter 08

He Thought I Was Faking My Death, But I Was Really Gone Chapter 08

I hovered above them, expressionless, watching them confess.

The medical examiner, having heard the whole story, added coldly:

“The victim was suffering from severe heatstroke due to the heat exposure.”

“If she’d gotten electrolytes in time, or been sent to medical care sooner, she wouldn’t have died at all.”

At the word “electrolytes,” Derek’s gaze locked onto Paige, hovering just outside the door.

That afternoon, the only bottle of electrolyte solution the whole group had was in my hands.

It was Paige who’d complained of dizziness and nausea.

Derek hadn’t hesitated for a second-he’d snatched it from me and handed it to her.

Meeting Derek’s stare now, Paige flinched back in fear.

“Derek, don’t look at me like that…”

“I didn’t know Nora was that sick at the time. And I had heat exhaustion too, and I hurt my foot…”

Just then, a nurse walked over with a medical chart.

“Which one of you is Paige Norwood?”

Paige raised her hand, trembling.

“That’s me.”

The nurse flipped open the chart and scanned it.

“You’re here for a follow-up on that foot blister?”

“The attending physician already looked. There’s nothing wrong with your foot at all.”

“That kind of blister-skin not even broken-a Band-Aid and it clears up in half a day.”

“You show no signs of infection. No signs of heat exhaustion either.”

The nurse looked up, brow furrowed with irritation.

“Honestly, I don’t even know why you all made such a fuss yesterday.”

Something clicked in Derek’s mind, all at once.

He lunged forward and grabbed Paige by the throat.

“You weren’t even hurt?”

“You never had heat exhaustion. And your foot was never even injured!”

Paige’s eyes rolled back as she was throttled, clawing desperately at Derek’s hands.

“Derek… let go… I can’t breathe…”

Derek flung her to the ground.

“It was you! You’re the one who got her killed!”

“If you hadn’t faked being sick, that electrolyte water would have been hers!”

“If you hadn’t kept saying she was faking her death, I never would have left her out there!”

Paige lay sprawled on the floor, growing more hysterical by the second.

“It wasn’t me! You’re the one who said she was in great shape, that we didn’t need to worry about her!”

“You’re the one who cut off her signal! You’re the one who called her disgusting when you saw her body!”

Derek stumbled back, breaking down, hands pressed over his head.

“…Yes. It was me.”

“I killed her.”

Tyler surged forward in fury and kicked Paige hard in the shoulder.

“You vicious woman! You posted that bait online deliberately, to get all of us to turn on Nora!”

“You played the victim while standing on her corpse. You’re not even human!”

Chase pulled out his phone.

“I’m posting the truth online. Everyone needs to know who you really are!”

Paige lunged desperately for the phone.

“You can’t post that! We’re all finished if you do!”

“You all lied to the rescue crew yesterday too! You’re all in this!”

“Do you want to go down with me?”

The group descended into a brawl right outside the morgue door.

I drifted above them, watching coldly as they tore into each other.

Not one of them was truly grieving for me.

They were only afraid-afraid of having to answer for my death.

Hospital security arrived quickly and pulled them apart.

Derek slumped against the wall in a daze, completely still.

Then, suddenly, he raised his hands and began slapping himself, again and again, left and right.

“Nora, I was wrong.”

“I really understand now. I was wrong.”